Business process models are used by a variety of enterprises to represent processes of the enterprise, for example to facilitate analysis and improvement of a current version of the process. Business analysts and managers of an enterprise can typically develop business process models, often with an objective of standardizing and improving how various business-related tasks are performed within the organization. Business process models can further be used in developing business process applications or other computer-based guides that workers within the enterprise can use in the course of the enterprise's business. An “enterprise” can generally refer to an organization, such as for example a business or company, a foundation, a university, or the like, and can have content requirements related to one or more business processes, content uses, etc.
In addition to management of business processes, a typical enterprise also invests significant effort in enterprise content management (ECM), which covers a broad range of applications, including document management (DM), Web content management (WCM), records management (RM), digital asset management (DAM), search of managed content, and the like. A content management system (CMS) suitable for managing the various content items (also referred to herein in some examples as “files” or “documents”) that an enterprise produces or receives, retains or otherwise stores, manipulates or modifies, etc. can support the requirements of one or more of such applications, and optionally other requirements, to provide a coherent solution in which content and management processes are capable of accessing content across a variety of applications subject to access controls, permissions, and the like. Content items managed by a CMS can include one or more of documents, images, photos, Web pages, records, XML documents, other unstructured or semi-structured files, etc., as well as directory structures such as folders, file trees, file plans, or the like, which can provide organization for multiple content items in addition to storing or otherwise representing relationships between content items, etc.
A CMS can manage one or more of the actual digital content of a content item, the metadata that describes a context of the content item, associations between the content item and other content or content items, a place and classification of the content item in a repository, indexes for finding and accessing content items, etc. The CMS can also manage processes and lifecycles of content items to ensure that this information is correct. The CMS can also manage one or more workflows for capturing, manipulating, editing, storing, and distributing content items, as well as the lifecycle for how long a content item will be retained and what happens after that retention period.
A CMS for use in enterprise content management can include one or more of document management tools, applications, and interfaces to support general office work, search, and discovery. Workflow management capabilities of a CMS can support various business processes, optionally including, but not limited to, case management and review and approval. Collaboration applications and services of a CMS can support the collaborative development of information and knowledge in the creation and refinement of content and documents. Web content management services of a CMS, which can be scalable, can support the delivery and deployment of content from the enterprise to its customers. Records management capabilities of a CMS can capture and preserve records based upon government-approved or other standards. A standards-based platform can also provide access to applications that use these standards, such as publishing, image management, email management, etc.